Bernadette Conant

Bernadette is the Chief Executive Officer of Canadian Water Network and is a trusted broker of water knowledge. Together with her team, she works to improve the application of water research to decisions for water management. In 2009, she founded the Canadian Municipal Water Consortium, whose members collaborate on critical drinking water, wastewater and stormwater challenges. The Consortium includes leaders from progressive municipalities, as well as industry and academic partners.

Bernadette is Vice-Chair of the board of directors for the Global Water Research Coalition. She also serves on the boards of Hydrogeologists without Borders and the Water Economics, Policy and Governance Network. Bernadette holds an MSc in hydrogeology from the University of Waterloo.

Dr. Katrina Hitchman

Katrina joined Canadian Water Network in 2009. In her current role, she is responsible for the strategic oversight and integrated management of Canadian Water Network’s programs, and the development of new initiatives that are of interest to Canadian Water Network and its partners. Katrina also oversees program evaluation initiatives to ensure Canadian Water Network is providing excellent value to partners, clients and the broader end-user community.

Katrina holds a PhD and Master of Applied Science in industrial and organizational psychology from the University of Waterloo, as well as an Honours Bachelor of Arts from Mount Allison University.

Dr. Bu Lam

Bu joined Canadian Water Network in May 2015 and is the manager of the Canadian Municipal Water Consortium. In this role, he is responsible for the ongoing development, management and implementation of CWN’s municipal water programs, including the Canadian Municipal Water Consortium. He oversees the development and management of research programs and activities that collectively support and advance solutions for managing, regulating and supporting municipal drinking water, wastewater and storm water systems.

Prior to joining Canadian Water Network, Bu was the director of community infrastructure for the Department of Community and Government Services with the Government of Nunavut. He has an extensive and broad municipal background, including the initiation and delivery of municipal capital programs and community sustainability planning. He led the planning and implementation of water treatment and distribution systems and wastewater systems in Nunavut, and established research initiatives that have supported the ongoing refinement of northern wastewater standards.

Bu holds a PhD in environmental chemistry from the University of Toronto and an Honours Bachelor of Science in biochemistry from Bishop’s University.

Karen Ford

Karen joined Canadian Water Network in May 2017 and is responsible for managing and overseeing the organization’s finances, administration, human resources and facilities.

Previously, Karen worked for over a decade at the Ontario Centres of Excellence, managing their operations and multiple facilities. Her duties included lease negotiations, IT support, policy development, administrative provisioning and procurement. She also worked as a Research Program Manager at the Centre for Research and Earth Technologies and the Waterloo Centre for Groundwater Research, both predecessor organizations of the Ontario Centres of Excellence.

Karen holds a Bachelor of Mathematics from the University of Waterloo and a Diploma in Accounting from Wilfrid Laurier University. She is a designated CMA and CPA. She holds a certificate in Canadian Risk Management from the Global Risk Management Institute and completed the Enterprise Risk Management Certificate program offered by the Society of Management Accountants of Canada.

Dalia Al-Ali

Dalia joined Canadian Water Network in July 2018 and is responsible for managing project timelines and budgets, tracking contract execution, planning project resourcing, and coordinating between internal and external project team members.

Prior to joining Canadian Water Network, Dalia worked as a project coordinator at Klohn Crippen Berger in the Mining Environmental Group. Her project experience includes assessment of the hydrologic and hydraulic resilience of wastewater management systems in mines, schedule and budget tracking, as well as developing and modeling tailings management plans.

Dalia is an engineer-in-training with a Bachelor of Applied Science from the University of Waterloo. She also holds a Master of Applied Science from Queen’s University with a concentration in applied sustainability.

Jennifer Cowie

Jennifer joined Canadian Water Network in October 2018 as the Corporate Events Manager and brings more than eight years of experience to this role. Her post-secondary education was in business administration – marketing. Previously, she worked at GoodLife Fitness Clubs managing events that ranged from 30 – 2000 attendees. As a seasoned events professional, Jennifer’s passion is to create a personalized experience for attendees. She focuses on building relationships with stakeholders, staff, attendees and vendors to ensure success from all sides of an event.

When she’s not at work, Jennifer enjoys cooking, hiking and spending time with her family. She volunteers as co-chair of the parent council at her daughters’ school.

Kim Jusek

Kim is the program manager for the Canadian Municipal Water Consortium and is responsible for supporting the Consortium’s strategic priorities. In this role, she designs and manages research projects, develops reports, drives knowledge mobilization and facilitates Consortium-related events.

Prior to joining Canadian Water Network, Kim worked as a project engineer at Stantec Consulting in the water group. Her project experience included planning studies and design projects related to municipal water and wastewater treatment, distribution and collection infrastructure, and urban water cycle connections to the natural environment. Kim also worked for the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change in the safe drinking water branch.

Kim is a Professional Engineer with a Bachelor of Engineering from the University of Guelph. She also holds a Master of Engineering and Public Policy from McMaster University, with an interdisciplinary diploma from the United Nations University Institute for Environment Water and Health.

Liana Kreamer

Liana is a skilled communicator who is passionate about helping the water sector share its stories. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Environmental Studies from the University of Waterloo and has worked for more than a decade in nonprofit marketing.

As the communications manager, Liana is responsible for helping Canadian Water Network’s team transform scientific research into insights that shape national conversations about water policy and practice. She leads the organization’s communications activities and ensures that compelling content is delivered across multiple channels. She also plays a key role in media and community outreach and engagement.

Lyle Schneider

Lyle Schneider joined Canadian Water Network in 2011. His tasks include the design, build and implementation of new web applications, day-to-day management of the organization’s IT infrastructure and IT support for CWN’s staff, researchers and partners.

Before joining Canadian Water Network, Lyle worked for three years as an engineering consultant, where he integrated software products into large manufacturing environments. Lyle had the opportunity to consult in a variety of industries, including automotive, food and beverage, steel and solar.

Lyle holds an Honours Bachelor of Science in mechatronics engineering from the University of Waterloo and a Master of Business Administration from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Shoeleh Shams

Shoeleh joined Canadian Water Network in November 2017. She is responsible for conducting and supporting the development of research on municipal water management with a focus on building resilient and sustainable communities.

Shoeleh has been working as a sessional lecturer at the University of Waterloo since 2015. Before immigrating to Canada, Shoeleh worked as a water resources engineer at Fars Water and Wastewater Engineering in Iran. Her responsibilities included the design and cost estimation of water distribution and conveyance infrastructure, as well writing and reviewing project proposals and environmental assessments.

Shoeleh recently defended her PhD thesis at the University of Waterloo. During her PhD, she investigated the impacts of wildfire and forest harvesting on drinking water quality and treatability. Shoeleh also holds an MASc in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Waterloo, where the focus of her research was the assessment of innovative technologies for nitrate removal from drinking water. In addition, Shoeleh completed an MASc in Water Resources Engineering and a BASc in Civil Engineering in Iran.

Shoeleh received several international awards during her graduate studies, including the Academic Achievement Award (1st place – Master’s Thesis) and Fresh Ideas Award from the American Water Works Association.

Amanda Sider

Amanda recently joined Canadian Water Network in February 2018 as the office administrator. She brings more than seven years of administrative and customer service experience to this role, as well as an educational background in environmental science.

From 2011-2018, Amanda was the office manager for Hunter Plumbing, Heating & Excavating Inc. After graduating with a BSc from the University of Waterloo, she completed a summer contract as a research assistant in a local watershed. Amanda is also an entrepreneur and successfully ran two businesses.

When she’s not at work, Amanda enjoys country living, travel and fishing in Ontario’s waterways.

L-A Steeleworthy

As the Communications Coordinator, L-A curates Canadian Water Network’s social media, develops print and digital communications products, and supports the promotion of corporate events.

Prior to joining Canadian Water Network, L-A worked as Social Media Manager with Arrivals + Departures, a national advertising agency, and as Web Content Strategist with Christie Digital.

L-A holds a Bachelor of Journalism from University of King’s College and an Advanced Diploma in Public Relations from Nova Scotia Community College. When she’s not at work, L-A enjoys spending time with her family and at local craft shows as both an organizer and an embroidery artist.